Eats

Everyone loves cookies and it just so happens my honey makes great M&M cookies. Today’s kindness was a simple one. She made cookies and we delivered them to three of our neighbors. Needless to say they were surprised and very happy to get them. Nothing like seeing people with big smiles on their faces. Kindness through sugar overload. That’s what we’re talking about.

Like this:

I’ve been reading a lot of best of lists in the last several days, everything from albums of 2013 to recipes involving bacon. Everyone seems to be making a year end list. I thought, why not jump on the bandwagon. So here we go. This isn’t a top ten or even a list with any sort of theme. These are just things (songs, movie houses, art, tv shows, food, etc.) I discovered in 2013 that will stay with me long into 2014 and beyond.

Let’s get to it….

The Lone Bellow came into my life via iTunes and a free download. I instantly became obsessed with them. Great lyrics, excellent harmonies, and catchy tunes that stay in your head for days.

The Cinnamon Crunch Bagel from Panera. This thing is addicting. I’m so glad we discovered them, and so sad at the same time. It’s all kinds of deliciousness in a small round baked good. Toasted with butter… so damn tasty.

Kickapoo State Park, Illinois. We’ve lived in Illinois now for nearly two and a half years. Surprisingly there are many things we’ve come to appreciate and even truly like about living here. One thing we haven’t is that there isn’t as much water as we were used to living in Oregon. We’ve done our best to travel to nearby towns with river walks (there aren’t that many) and to find state parks and such that have a decent amount of water, in whatever form we can find it. One such place, to our delight, is Kickapoo. First, you have to love the name, c’mon, it’s kind of awesome. But more importantly, it has water. All sorts of little lakes and a stream, running through it. There are canoe rentals in the summer, and loads of trails. We went in the fall, when the colors of the foliage were stunningly beautiful. We will definitely be going back.

The Golden Harbor Restaurant. With a huge menu, free tea by the pot, and a cool old school vibe, this place rocks. Plus, the food is great. How can you go wrong with spicy green beans, salt and pepper mushrooms, and plates full of sweet and spicy chicken. The menu on the wall is enormous and all in Chinese. You can pick up an english language menu from the little table by the front door if you like. Write down the numbers of the things you’d like to order, take it up to the counter, and moments later your tasty hot food starts coming out as it’s ready. We love this place.

Season tickets for the University of Illinois women’s volleyball and basketball. What a great deal. We’d been to games before, but this all inclusive $35 dollar ticket package gets you into all the home games for both sports. We’ve had hours of enjoyment at these games. The atmosphere, the competition, supporting the local university, and eating an occasional stadium dog… all worth it. Can’t beat it for good sporty entertainment.

Cris Cab. I can’t even remember how I stumbled on this young gent. All I know for sure is that his music is catchy and I’m semi-addicted to it.

Dominic Thomas was born. I don’t know if you can call him a discovery, but as he grows, and has one discovery after another of his own, we have discovered a little more about him, and ourselves. I think that’s part of the beauty of little people. As they grow and change and develop we see the world through them, and it is an amazingly wondrous place.

The fun of riding steam trains. Taking a five mile ride on a steam train isn’t exactly something I would choose to do on my own. Maybe an over night or a several night journey, one with sleeper cars and a nice dining car, but not a shorty ride on a steam train that goes one way forward and then backs up on the return trip. But, somehow, with the help of the excitement of a three year old, short trip steam trains kinda rock. We went a couple of different times and I’m sure we’ll be going again this year. Our mini engineer in training loves it and, consequently, so do we.

The Blacklist. James Spader is just plain awesome. He’s an amazing actor. In lessor hands this role, and the tv show connected to it, might not be as riveting and interesting as it is. But with James Spader at the center, a decent supporting cast, and top notch writing, Blacklist keeps you hooked.

Portland, Maine. We took a little road trip for our 10th anniversary to Portland by way of NY, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, etc. We loved New England. It’s beautiful, it’s people are great, and it’s beautiful. Portland, the destination for this trip, didn’t disappoint. We met in Portland, Oregon. It’s our city, as we like to call it. We love it there. I had, however, always wanted to go to the other Portland. To check it out. To see what it had to offer. My honey felt the same. Seemed fitting that on our 10th we would take a trip to that other Portland to see what we could see. It was great. Good restaurants, excellent scenery, really nice people, and funky in it’s own way, we enjoyed it very much.

Roadtrippers. I love this website. We travel quite a bit. Most especially, in recent years at least, we’ve gone on some major road trips here in the U.S. This site allows you to plan your route and then see what sorts of places might be along it. From practical to strange Roadtrippers has them all. They also have an app, which rocks. I couldn’t recommend it highly enough.

Cafe ZoJo. It’s a local coffee shop that’s fairly new. I’m not sure if we actually found this in 2013 or the year before, but never the less, I’m including it here. The staff are friendly, with quick helpful smiles, the atmosphere is eclectic and comfortable, the food is tasty, and the coffee is sublime. ZoJo is our go to for take away coffee. I’ve never had better drip coffee in my life. That’s saying a lot.

Sleepy Creek Vineyards. We actually discovered this place by way of a thing called the Fork in the Road Tour. A few local farms, their goods, a nice drive with good friends, and we ended up, last stop on the tour, at Sleepy Creek. We were given a tour of the vineyard, an explanation of the bottling process, and then a tasting. The wine was good, but the people were great, and the atmosphere was awesome. Later, like a month or so, they hosted the Salk Fork River Art Festival. Again, great setting, great wine, great people. We were hooked. They do several events a month including things like film festivals, live music, art festivals, weenie roasts, and of course wine tastings. It’s worth the drive east.

Cinnebarre in Salem, Oregon. We live in Illinois now, but we still spend a significant amount of time in Oregon. It’s where I’m from, and where my honey lived for over 30 years. It’s home. My mom lives in Salem, in the same house we lived in when I was in high school. Salem is the capitol city, and has always been considered, amongst people who live in Portland anyway, a lessor town. But in the last several years Salem has grown up a little, and funked out a bit as well. To prove this point they now have a movie place downtown called Cinebarre. It’s a chain, though there are only about seven or eight locations around the country. The fact that one of those is in Salem is very cool. Cinebarre is a movie theater and it’s a restaurant. You get table service during the movie, which seems like it could distract you, but it doesn’t really. Walk in, look at the menu before the movie starts, fill out your card, prop it up, and the wait staff comes to take your order via your card and then brings you the food while the movie is going. You can keep ordering if you want to, they also have beer and wine. It’s a kick and a unique movie experience. I like it.

Honda PCX 150 Scooter. We used to own motorcycles. Big motorcycles. Hogs. We had all the gear, went on rides, and thought we were slightly above all those scooter riders out there. That’s the way it goes. If you ride motorcycles you think scooter riders, or scooterists as I like to call them, are slightly beneath you. Not really in an arrogant way, it’s just that as a motorcycle rider you’re cool. As a scooterist you’re nerdy. Until, of course, we gave up the motorcycles and bought a Honda scooter in 2013. It’s beyond awesome. It hauls buns, can carry both of us, is fun as hell to ride, and seems easier. Maybe the easier part is just because you don’t have to shift, I don’t know. But it’s zippy, and it makes a fantastic second car. I so love to ride it. Who would’ve thunk, those few short years ago, we would prefer a scooter, but we do. I guess if that makes us nerds we proudly own it. I’m a scooterist. Damn straight I am.

Like this:

Here we are, a third of the way through, and I feel like I’m just getting started. This is good for the soul. This little affirmation every day of things to be thankful and grateful for. It’s sending positive energy out into the world. I feel that from others. I feel that for myself.

10. I’m thankful for coffee, in all it’s forms — lattes, au laits, drip, french press, espresso, iced, hot, and a lovely thing called a Bibero I once had in Spain. Not only does it help me to wake in the morning, I enjoy it. I love the warmth in the morning and sometimes the cold in the afternoon. I love the flavor of a flavored drink or the simplicity of a really good cup o’ joe. I enjoy trying new cafes and stands and diners. I’m a fan, and thankful I get to drink the stuff. It brings me joy.

Like this:

We’ve been back home now for a few days, but before we actually arrived here, on the last day of our anniversary road trip, Karen and I made a little list of stuff as we were driving. Notes about things we saw, stuff we did, people we met, etc. So without further ado, here it is… our notes from the road.

Alright, maybe not just yet… before I unleash the rest of this post I just want to say that having Karen in my life has been a miraculous thing. We are so lucky to have found each other. It’s a beautiful thing to have been together for 10 years and still feel, and in fact feel more strongly, such a huge love for each other. It’s also a lovely thing to be “married” to your best friend. There’s no one either of us would rather hang out with, and amazingly we both feel that way and want to share everything. It’s wonderful and amazing. I am beyond lucky, and I know it.

Music: 936 songs on shuffle… No repeats… Maine and Back Again Playlist. Awesomeness.

Reminiscing about 10 years together… Priceless.

On routes (Canada’s much nicer version of the rest area).

Nicest person: VIA rail employee in Toronto who walked us a couple of blocks to Union Station and then to where we needed to go inside the station… We told him we wished we could’ve taken him home as souvenir!

Honorable mentions for nicest person: Jimmy’s coffee barista who gave us free croissants, girl at on route stop who talked to us about the toll, red rocket driver, the hotel dude who pointed toward good ice cream in Schenectady, hotel guy in Portland Maine who answered our questions, rental car guy, Steve, at Albany Imternational Airport, also guy in Albany rental car park who let us store our belongings in little locked kiosk while we walked in to get our new rental car. Lots of nice people along the way.

Like this:

Wow. And wow again. I think I may have started more than one blog entry with that word and here I am using it once again. Oh well, I’m getting older and that means repeating myself repeatedly. I’m OK with that.

I digress…

Wow. It’s been a whirlwind of activity and adventure since we left our little hovel in Urbana, Illinois for places west on July 5. Here we are on August 14 and I have no idea where the time has gone. Day after tomorrow we pack up Thor, our tried and true Volvo, our two pupinos, a bunch of crap, and ourselves for the trek back home. Six days later, and some 2500 miles we will once again be back in the Midwest. Where has the time gone?

When we were planning this sojourn we thought, OK, six weeks (including two weeks driving) would be plenty of time, but then again how can there ever be enough time spent with the people you love. There are so many people here who are in our lives it’s been tough to see everyone. We haven’t seen everyone. That’s a hard one. To leave without seeing everyone. Seriously though, how could we? We’ve been so busy. Let’s recap…

Six days driving here, get here and have appointment with Oregon oncologist, start treatment in Oregon, see Stan and Connie who drove to Salem just to see us (you guys rock), drive up to Portland to meet my cousin and his family after he finished the STP bike ride, eat pizza, have yogurt, drive up to Burlington, WA (and Marblemount, WA) to participate in the spreading of my grandparents ashes and next day check out the estate sale put on by my Mom and Aunts and Uncles at my grandparents house, from there take off for three days in Long Beach, WA (after a 5 hour drive to get there), enjoy the beach, drive back to Salem, drive back up to Scappoose, dinner with friends who invited us over (thanks SJ and Angela, your house is awesome), trips back and forth between Salem and Scappoose every week so I could get my shot in Salem, helping Mom sprinkle some of grandpa and grandmas ashes at Willamette University, work on the yard in Scappoose, and more work on the yard in Scappoose (thanks to Mom and Kev for helping us out with that one of the days… you two are amazing), dinner out with friends (thanks Maggie for taking us to dinner for our birthdays), dinner with friends from Urbana who happened to come to Portland for a wedding while we were here (great dining with you Evelyne and Natalie), showing our friend Jen (who also hails from Urbana) around Portland, and the farm, for three and a half days, the treat of breakfast out at the Screen Door courtesy of Vicki (thanks girl, the chicken and waffles there can’t be beat!), a few walks in parks both in Portland and Salem with the pupinos, one of which included a piano solo by Karen, a trip on the river with Stan, dinner at Stan and Connie’s place for us with some of our good friends (so great to see you guys), a walk at Cathedral Park with Liz and Jake and Ilsa and Indy followed by a tour of their new house (love it you guys!), a stop by my old office for some chat (Stacia, I love ya girl) and lunch with some of my old work mates (I miss you Josh, Linda, Chris, Liz and Stacia!), packing up the car and driving back and forth between Salem and Scappoose every week (oh, I think I said that already), our annual walk through of one of our rentals with the renters and a drive by of the other, a couple of barbecues thrown for us by POD members, one including splashes in a pool and the other including a tasty salad made with home grown veggies, a couple of trips to the Portland Saturday Market (Sundays too!), a zoo concert (Melissa Etheridge) with some of the POD, dinners out at various places we didn’t want to miss while we were here (Piazza Italia, Little Big Burger, tacos at The Varsity, The Stepping Stone, Ruby Jewel for ice cream, chicken and waffles at The Screen Door, Mississippi Pizza, a food cart or two, Pok Pok, E-San for thai, burritos at Muchas, etc.) all of which made us each gain about 10 pounds, breakfast with my sister Kay, time spent at the farm with Mom and Don, time spent in Scappoose with Kev, packing up the car and driving back and forth between Salem and Scappoose every week like gypsies, sun, fun, and loads of love.

It’s been an amazing time. We’ve had so much fun. Though, seriously, I think we’re ready to be home again. Not that we don’t love it here, and love everyone here, but we’re ready to be home. Sleep in our own beds, be in our own house, see and spend time with the kids and our little man, who we have missed very much. I guess that’s what happens when you live in two places. Live in two places in your heart I mean. You are always missing something, someone. That’s the nature of how life works sometimes. We moved to Illinois to be a part of of the kid’s lives, to be in Sebastian’s life, and we are glad we did. We wouldn’t change that at all. It’s just that this is home, and always will be. The people here and this place make it so. We are torn, but that doesn’t make us any less happy to be there when we are there, or here when we are here.

That bit there being a few moments of reflection.

So we are heading home on Thursday morning. Leaving early to get a jump on our longest driving day of the lot. 10 hours the first day. We’re going to Boise, Idaho by way of Bend and Hwy 20, then Driggs, ID near the Tetons, and from there a drive through the Tetons and Yellowstone and then stays in Sheridan, WY, Chamberlain, SD, La Crosse, Wisconsin, and home. We’ll get there just in time for the Urbana Sweetcorn Festival. Yum!

We’ll miss you Oregon, and everyone in it. It’s been a flash, and now we’re almost out of here. A month, poof, just like that and it’s gone. Keyser Soze has nothing on us. We love it here, and we love the people here. This wonderful adventure has flown by, and been fantastic. But be rest assured… we will be back. It’s time for us to go back home, to more people we love, but we will be back. We will miss you while we’re gone. But be rest assured… we will be back.

Words from Wordsworth

With an eye made quiet by the power of harmony, and the deep power of joy, we see into the life of things.
~ William Wordsworth

Words from Anita

We are mosaics — pieces of light, love, history, stars — glued together with magic, and music and words. ~ Anita Krizzan

Words From Walt

Stop this day and night with me, and you shall possess the origin of all poems; You shall possess the good of the earth and sun—(there are millions of suns left;) You shall no longer take things at second or third hand, nor look through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books; You shall not look through my eyes either, nor take things from me: You shall listen to all sides, and filter them from yourself. ~Walt Whitman

Words From Neil

‎May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, and don't forget to make some art -- write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself. ~ Neil Gaiman